Government Contract Bid Protest - Illinois

ILLINOIS PROCUREMENT PROTEST

Controlling-Rule Gate

Section 20-75 of the Illinois Procurement Code directs the Chief Procurement Officers to establish protest procedures by rule. This form is organized around 44 Ill. Admin. Code § 1.5550, the standard-procurement protest rule for the Chief Procurement Officer for General Services (CPO-GS). Do not use its deadlines for another procurement portfolio without verifying that portfolio's current rule.

Under § 1.5550(c), a General Services protest must be physically received by the identified PRO; a timely postmark is not enough. Fax and email qualify as writing, but the rule warns that receipt is not guaranteed through those means. Clearly mark the delivery container or email subject line “PROTEST” and retain proof of actual receipt.

General Services Timing

A Bulletin notice establishes the known-or-should-have-known date for its subject matter. The PRO may consider an untimely protest for good cause or because it raises issues significant to the procurement system, but a protester should never rely on that discretion.

Protest Letter

PROTEST — TIME-SENSITIVE PROCUREMENT FILING

Date: [________________________________]

To: [PROTEST REVIEW OFFICER NAME]

Office of the Chief Procurement Officer for [portfolio]

Delivery address / email: [________________________________]

Re: Protest of [Solicitation / Rejection / Award]

Procurement No.: [________________________________]

Procurement title: [________________________________]

Agency: [________________________________]

Dear Protest Review Officer:

[PROTESTER LEGAL NAME] ("Protester") submits this written protest under 30 ILCS 500/20-75, [controlling CPO rule], and the Solicitation's protest instructions.

1. Protester and Eligibility

1. Protester's name and address are [________________________________].

2. Protester's representative and contact information are [________________________________].

3. [Choose and explain:]

☐ Any person may protest this solicitation notice, solicitation document, pre-submission conference, or late-submission rejection.

☐ Protester submitted a bid, proposal, or response and protests its rejection or the decision to award to another vendor.

4. Protester is an interested party because [describe the actual or prospective bidder/offeror status and direct economic interest].

2. Procurement and Challenged Action

5. The Agency issued [IFB / RFP / other] No. [________] for [goods/services].

6. The challenged action is [quote or precisely identify the notice, solicitation term, conference statement, late-submission decision, rejection, evaluation, or award].

7. The supporting notice or document is Exhibit [__].

3. Timeliness and Receipt

8. The Solicitation or relevant Bulletin notice was posted on [date]. [If applicable:] Opening is scheduled for [date/time].

9. Protester knew or should have known the facts on [date] because [________________________________].

10. The contract [has not been executed / execution status is unknown / was reported executed on date].

11. This protest is timely under [rule subsection] because [show the 14-day calculation and the pre-opening or pre-execution gate].

12. The PRO physically received this protest on [date/time/method], as shown by Exhibit [__].

4. Factual and Legal Grounds

Conclusions alone may be insufficient. Identify the violated procurement statute, rule, or solicitation term and supply facts, argument, and exhibits.

Ground One — [________________________________]

13. The controlling requirement is [quote and cite statute, rule, or solicitation section].

14. The Agency instead [specific action].

15. The action violates the requirement because [fact-specific explanation].

Ground Two — [________________________________]

16. The controlling requirement is [________________________________].

17. The Agency instead [________________________________].

18. The resulting violation is [________________________________].

Ground Three — [________________________________]

19. [State additional facts, authority, and argument.]

5. Procurement-Code Grounds Worksheet

Use only provisions that govern the procurement.

☐ Under 30 ILCS 500/20-10(e), a competitive sealed bid was not evaluated on requirements and criteria stated in the invitation for bids.

☐ A bid-price factor was not objectively measurable or was not set forth as required by § 20-10(e).

☐ The award did not comply with § 20-10(g)'s applicable responsible-and-responsive bidder requirements or required written explanation.

☐ Under 30 ILCS 500/20-15(e), the request for proposals did not state the relative importance of price and other evaluation factors, or the Agency did not follow the disclosed evaluation structure.

☐ The Agency violated [another specific Code section, CPO rule, or solicitation term].

Supporting analysis: [________________________________].

6. Supporting Evidence

20. Protester submits the following exhibits:

a. [Solicitation / amendment / Bulletin notice];

b. [Relevant submission excerpts];

c. [Evaluation / rejection / award material];

d. [Declaration, calculation, communication, or other proof]; and

e. [Proof of timeliness and receipt].

21. [If material is unavailable:] Protester cannot yet obtain [document]. Its expected availability date is [date], and Protester requests permission to supplement promptly.

22. Information claimed confidential, proprietary, or trade secret is clearly identified as [________________________________]. This designation is not a substitute for compliance with applicable public-record law or PRO instructions.

7. Requested Relief

Protester requests that the CPO:

1. Accept and consider this protest;
2. Maintain the pre-award or post-award stay required by the controlling rule unless the authorized immediate-execution determination is made;
3. [Revise or cancel the solicitation / reopen the response period / reverse the rejection / correct the evaluation / issue a new solicitation / direct a lawful award / take another compliance action];
4. Preserve the procurement record and consider the submitted evidence;
5. Issue a written determination resolving the protest; and
6. Grant other relief authorized by statute or rule.

The protest does not request federal-style bid-preparation costs, consultant fees, or attorney fees without separate Illinois authority.

Respectfully submitted,

Signature: ______________________________

[Name / title / organization]

[Address / telephone / email]

Delivery Declaration

I declare that the foregoing protest and exhibits were delivered to the PRO identified in the Solicitation by [method] and physically received on [date] at [time].

Signature: ______________________________

Exhibit Checklist

☐ Solicitation, amendments, and protest instructions

☐ Illinois Procurement Bulletin posting

☐ Submission excerpts necessary to decide the protest

☐ Rejection, evaluation, tabulation, or award material

☐ Supporting declarations and documents

☐ Proof of physical receipt by the PRO

☐ Confidentiality index, if needed

Stay and Decision Notes

Under § 1.5550(e), unless the CPO-GS determines that State needs require immediate contract execution, a timely pre-award protest stops award until resolution, and a timely post-award protest stays the award without penalty to the State. The CPO-GS resolves the protest by written determination after considering the PRO's recommendation. Section 20-75 makes the authorized procurement determinations final and conclusive unless clearly erroneous, arbitrary, capricious, or contrary to law. Judicial proceedings are separate, and § 1.5550(g) permits the CPO-GS to defer the protest if a related court or administrative action has begun.

Official Sources

• Illinois Procurement Code, Article 20: https://www.ilga.gov/legislation/ILCS/details?MajorTopic=&Chapter=&ActName=Illinois%20Procurement%20Code.&ActID=532&ChapterID=7&ChapAct=30+ILCS+500%2F&SeqStart=8000000&SeqEnd=11300000&Print=True
• 44 Ill. Admin. Code § 1.5550: https://www.ilga.gov/ftp/JCAR/AdminCode/044/044000010S55500R.html